


Stepping Stones

by koalathebear



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-20
Updated: 2016-04-09
Packaged: 2018-05-07 22:40:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5473172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/koalathebear/pseuds/koalathebear
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set after the events of "The Force Awakens".  Rey is on the island where the First Jedi Temple is located.  Luke Skywalker has been found but he refuses to leave, so Leia has Shara Bey's son Poe Dameron fly her to the island ...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

_" The Jedi Order of the Old Republic was against the forming of worldly attachments, including love and relationships as loss and fear of loss could drive a Jedi to the Dark Side …"_

The battered Corellian ship hovered above the island before landing on the shore near the _Falcon_. The towering sea crags rising from the water were remote and inaccessible. A long time ago, the Jedi had founded their first temple on the precipitous rocks of this mystical island. The first Jedi Temple was an ancient building established and maintained by the Jedi Order prior to the execution of Order 66 and had probably never seen quite so many visitors until this day. 

Luke turned his head and glared down at an unrepentant Rey who pretended not to notice his stare. Chewbacca also avoided Luke Skywalker's questioning by walking away from them both.

"You knew they were coming." It was not a question.

Rey ignored him and ran lightly down the many, many steps of the island. 

General Leia Organa was standing beside the ship by the time she arrived, her face shining with unshed tears. While she nodded her head at Rey and Chewbacca in acknowledgment, her attention was focused on the cloaked man standing behind Rey.

"You didn't make it easy to find you," Leia told her brother, her voice calm and husky.

"That was the whole point," Luke replied softly. His voice was filled with grief and boundless remorse. The raw and uncontained pain spilling out of both of them hurt Rey's heart. 

"It's not your fault," Leia told her brother, her face crumpling with sorrow and Rey looked away to give them their moment of privacy amidst their grief.

Rey's attention shifted to the tall, dark-haired pilot in the deep orange Resistance uniform giving orders to the crew. Poe Dameron made sure his commands were being obeyed before he allowed himself to walk towards her.

"It's good to see you again," he told her warmly as he came to stand before her. "You look … well," he told her, his dark eyes resting on her face.

"You arrived here much sooner than I expected," Rey replied, conscious that she was ridiculously pleased to see the Resistance pilot again.

"The General knew that her brother would refuse to accompany you back to D'Qar so the ship and crew were waiting for your confirmation that you had found Luke Skywalker."

"She's a wise woman."

"And she knows her brother well." Poe glanced around the enigmatic island, taking in the almost breathtaking wild beauty. Combined with the sense of solitude, the physical appearance of the island and the ocean and bird sounds evoke a quiet sense of magic and mysticism.

*

_"But you don't agree with the old Jedi Order, do you Master?"_

_"Don't call me master. I'm not your master." He had avoided looking at her. If he stared at her for too long, he was in no doubt that despite being entirely untrained – she would know._

_"Not yet," she countered._

_"I'm not going to teach you," Luke had insisted stubbornly even as Rey had refused to back down. She was obstinate with an indomitable spirit that was all too familiar._

_Luke's eyes had clouded with memory. "Instead of looking at what was best for each individual Jedi student , the Jedi Council came to rely too heavily on rules and regulations. Attachment can be dangerous – fear for our loved ones can cause us to act in anger … it can drive us to the Dark Side."_

_"But to feel love and affection for another is natural," Rey had pointed out, a frown furrowing her brow._

_Luke had nodded. "You are right."_

_"If the Jedi did not form relationships and were cut off from others – then how did they understand others?" Rey had asked curiously._

_Luke had nodded. "Some Jedi may not feel a need for attachment, and others simply may not wish to form attachments; but those who do should be taught how to handle them. But cutting themselves off, the Jedi became detached and remote from those whom they sought to help. They blinded themselves …"_

_"Loss and grief is a normal part of life," Rey had told the old Jedi gravely, wisdom in her dark eyes. "We suffer loss, we fall – and then we get up and keep going."_

*

The small cluster of six stone huts shaped like beehives, two oratories and small terraces were located 714 feet above sea level, after a steep climb of 600 stone steps. Facing southward and sheltered from the winds, the site was favoured by Luke Skywalker when he wished to be alone with his memories and meditations. Rey was in no doubt that he wished the lot of them far across the galaxy but he had no choice but to walk with his sister, to speak of things that caused them both unbearable pain.

Poe's eyes were wondering as he studied the strange structures curiously. While the slate rock huts appeared to be round from the outside, their insides were rectangular with walls curving inward to form a corbelled roof and there are shelves and sleeping platforms built into the walls. It was functional and beautiful at the same time.

From their high vantage point, they could see Leia and Luke being shadowed at a discreet distance by two officers and Chewbacca. The General preferred to stay on lower ground. Meanwhile, Poe and Rey had scaled the steps and rocks like nimble mountain goats.

"Finn is doing well," he told her as they sat on a rocky outcrop and stared out over the water. "Dr. Kalonia woke him out of his coma yesterday. She's expecting him to make a full recovery." Rey's eyes brightened. "He wanted to come but was in no condition to travel," Poe remarked. "He needs to get well quickly as the Resistance is preparing to leave D'Qar."

Rey's eyes widened. "Already? Surely the First Order is too busy recovering from the destruction of the Starkiller Base to come after the Resistance so soon."

"We can't take that chance. The First Order knows where we are now – we need to leave and regroup on another planet. The General is trying to persuade Luke Skywalker to come with us …"

"Good luck with that," Rey muttered wryly. "He's the most stubborn man I've ever met – he's refusing to train me."

"You can't blame the man for being apprehensive given what happened with Kylo Ren …"

"I'm not him. I would never lose myself like that." Rey's voice was blunt and very matter-of-fact. Poe's dark eyes glowed with admiration. He believed in her implicitly. He'd back her in a fight any day.

He reached out and tucked her dark hair behind one ear, allowing his fingers to brush against the smoothness of her cheek. There were many women across the galaxy who would have loved to catch the eye of the famous (or infamous) Black Leader and he had never been one to deny himself the pleasure or solace of a beautiful woman. 

There was something different about this girl though with her steady fearless gaze and courage. He found himself wanting far more than just a fleeting coupling – although he had no doubt that both of them would find such an encounter pleasurable.

Rey reached out her hand and he took it without hesitation and she led him back down the narrow, winding steps that twisted amongst the seaside cliffs of the island.

*

"Does she know?" Leia asked her brother as they stared up at the two people making their way down the steep hillside.

"Not consciously. I'm surprised you didn't tell her," Luke remarked dryly.

"Not my place… and there were too many other matters on our minds," Leia replied. "I want you to come back with us – we need you."

"No. I left for a reason." His voice was quiet, stifled grief coiled like an angry snake in his breast.

"You will come back with us and you will train Rey in the ways of the Force. You will teach her how to be a Jedi."

"Are you out of your mind?" Luke demanded, venerable Jedi master momentarily replaced by the whiny adolescent from Tatooine. "After all that I've done – what I've been unable to do?" 

"You have to stop blaming yourself, Luke and learn to forgive."

"That's not possible."

Leia stared at him very steadily. "On the day I lost Ben … I lost Han and I lost you. I didn't just lose my son, I lost everyone in the world I care about. If I can forgive you, then you can, too."

"Leia – "

"You're not responsible for what happened to Ben. He was always strong-minded … restless … too much of our father in him perhaps," she said with a wry smile on her face. Although she was no longer a fresh-faced beauty, Leia's strong and elegant face was now filled with grace and strength.

Luke sighed. He had never been able to deny Leia anything – it's why he left in the first place …


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I am a terrible human being. I am sorry it took so incredibly long to finish this story. I actually had 3/4 of the last part written but it took [this tumblr post to guilt me into action](http://koalathebear.tumblr.com/post/142165555011/saucefactory-starrysleeper-gleeddicted-when)!

Luke glanced over at the young pair sitting side by side at the waterline on rocks looking out over the water. Although he couldn't hear their conversation, they were speaking animatedly and both appeared deeply interested in what the other had to say and the discussion was easy and unstilted.

"You brought Shara Bey's son with you." He remarked dryly and Leia shrugged.

"He's my best pilot."

"The Galaxy is a very small place sometimes ... does he know his mother flew with you over Naboo – that his father fought alongside you with the Pathfinders?" Luke asked her curiously.

"Perhaps... " Leia shrugged. "We've not discussed it. I don't think Shara or Kes told their son a great deal about the wars ... perhaps they were trying to protect him." As she spoke, Leia's face twisted slightly, pain flickering in her dark eyes as she recalled her failure to protect her own son.

"Leia - it wasn't your fault ... if anyone, you should blame me," Luke told her heavily, his face filled with grief.

"Is that why you're here? To try to atone?" she asked him. "Enough with the soul-searching and self-loathing. I need you back in the fight, Luke ... I can't do this alone."

*

"Sir," Poe acknowledged the older man, standing to attention respectfully as Luke Skywalker walked up the steps towards him, his grey hood flung back from his face to reveal his calm visage. There was only a passing family likeness between Luke and Leia but both projected the same air of grief, experience and calm.

Rey had been summoned by Leia - no doubt for a debriefing on all that had taken place since her arrival on the island. His sister continued to be the most stubborn and determined creature in the Galaxy and she would no doubt have her way in the end - but that didn't mean he had to make it easy for her.

"At ease, Poe Dameron," Luke told the pilot. "There are no titles or ranks here on this island."

Poe looked a little startled. "You know my name?"

"You have the look of your mother." Poe's eyebrows rose questioningly and he frowned briefly. Luke smiled. "Shara's last mission for the Rebellion and the Alliance was to help me infiltrate an Imperial base on Vetine to retrieve what remained of the Force-sensitive tree that had grown at the heart of the Jedi Temple on Coruscant. The mission would not have been impossible without her."

That made Poe's frown disappear and his expression lightened. "Ah ... I grew up with that tree," Poe said with a reminiscent smile, remembering the tree that had grown outside his home on Yavin 4. "My parents always told me that it was a symbol of their hope that one day there would be peace." He didn't go on to mention that he'd spent many an hour as a child climbing up the strong limbs of that tree. It seemed more than a little disrespectful to mention that he had used such venerable relic for play.

"Your mother loved you very much ...I was deeply sorry to learn of her death... she was still so young."

Poe's face lost all expression. "She died when I was nine. It was a very long time ago," Poe replied, his voice even. He didn't elaborate. Kes had never been the same after his mother's death.

"I want to thank you for all the support you have given my sister," Luke replied unexpectedly. Guilt clouded his eyes. "She has had had so much to bear ... and alone."

"The General has been looking for you for a long time ...There was much celebration at the base when it was confirmed that you had been found. I look forward to the honour of flying you back to the Base," Poe told him calmly, his dark eyes almost daring the older man to disagree with him. Luke felt a grudging respect for the young pilot who was clearly extremely loyal to Leia. He had visions of the young man attempting to drag him down the winding stones of the island and back to D'Qar whether or not Luke was willing - so long as Leia wished it to be so.

His gaze followed Poe's who was watching Rey standing by the Falcon with Leia and Chewbacca. The young woman's face looked very serious as she spoke with Leia and Poe's eyes did not move from Rey's face.

"You should tell her how you feel, you might be surprised," Luke remarked coolly.

Poe's brows drew together sharply. "I don't know what you mean," he replied stiffly. "We barely know each other."

Luke gave a short laugh, the sound rusty from years of disuse. "I'm the last person in the Galaxy you should try lying to, Poe Dameron," he told Poe before leaving the X-wing pilot standing at the cliff's edge frowning.

*

That night, they sat around a stone fire place, watching the flames crackle and dance. Luke had served up a basic meal for them which Chewbacca had eyed with some scepticism before starting to eat with slow wariness.

Rey and Poe, much less fussy about their meals, ate their meal swiftly and remaining silent to allow Luke and Leia to speak even though both of them were listening intently. They felt like children sitting at the dinner table while the adults argued.

"I suppose you want me to train her," Luke's voice was matter-of-fact and resigned.

Rey's head turned sharply to stare at the General who nodded calmly. "Yes ...she has already come to the attention of ... the First Order and Snoke ... we can't leave her defenceless."

"I swore I'd never teach again," the Jedi Master pointed out.

"It's time for you to return to the fight ... the Resistance needs you. _I_ need you."

The glow of the fire flickered over Luke's face as he listened to his sister's impassioned plea.

"I'm not sure there's much fight left in me, sister," he pointed out sadly.

Leia's eyes kindled. "I lost my home planet, my parents, my son, my husband ... I still have a brother and you need to help me," she told him firmly. Her words dared him to contradict her, dared him to tell her that his pain and loss was greater than hers.

Luke nodded slowly. "I felt the destruction of the Hosnian System ..." he said in a low voice.

"Countless people died ... First Alderaan ... then Hosnian Prime ... Luke - we can _never_ let it happen again ..."

The dead had included Korr Sella, the General's envoy to the New Republic. Poe hadn't known the commander particularly well but he'd known her by sight. Capable and bright with a no-nonsense manner about her, the young woman had not only been trusted by Leia in her professional capacity, she had also been a deeply loyal friend and Sella's death had hit the older woman very hard.

Poe had been en route to Takodana with Blue Squadron when the news of the destruction of the Hosnian System had reached them. All of them had friends and loved ones on Hosnian Prime … 

"First – we fight. We grieve later," he had told his squadron grimly when they had seen the sky explode with fire and the command centre had notified them of the tragedy.

Luke exhaled. He watched as Poe and Rey washed up the bowls and spoons from their meal. "I'm going to sleep. You can sleep in one of the huts. I'll tell you my answer in the morning," he told his sister who sighed.

"I'm not leaving this island without you," Leia told him grimly.

"The morning," he repeated and then vanished into the darkness. Chewbacca shrugged at Leia and he, too vanished down the steps towards the ship to sleep for the night. 

"Don’t stay up too late. We'll all need to have our wits about us tomorrow." With that, the older woman walked towards one of the stone huts, picking up her sleeping bag along the way.

"Where are you going to sleep?" Poe asked Rey casually.

"By trees there – I've been sleeping out in the open, staring up at the stars …"

"Then I'll join you, if you don't mind," Poe asked politely.

*

As they lay on the grass, staring up at the stars, Rey was full of questions. How long had he been with the Resistance, how long had he been flying? How long had it taken him to learn how to fly an X-wing? She wanted to know about his parents, about his childhood.

In turn, she had answered all of his questions to the extent she could recall. "So you never knew you were Force sensitive before?" he asked her curiously and she shook her head. 

"No … but now it's like there's a heat in my blood … I can feel it as though it's alive …" she murmured, watching a comet blazing across the blackness of the sky.

"Maybe it was a protection for you … to keep you hidden …"

"Perhaps," she replied uncertainly. "Kylo Ren offered to teach me how to use it." Disgust and revulsion filled her voice and her skin turned cold at the memory.

Poe flinched.

Rey frowned. "You know him, too?"

Poe's voice was pained. "I knew him as a child … in the days before he was … the monster he is today. To be honest, I didn't recognise him when I saw him on Jakku … I had no idea of what he had become … the General never spoke of him – when she spoke of the loss of her son, we assumed that he had died."

"It would have been better for the Galaxy if that had happened," Rey told him in a low voice. "He killed his own father … looked him in the eye and murdered him in cold blood." 

Poe flinched. "There's a lot of darkness in the Skywalker family … a lot of good, but a lot of bloodshed and evil as well." When Poe had been a child, stories of Darth Vader had sent terror into the hearts of children. The whispers that he had not died but that his villainy had been able to continue to exist had been the stuff of nightmares. It had always been difficult for Poe to reconcile that darkness of her origins with Leia Organa. Perhaps it was the fact that she had come from such beginnings that made the General so fiercely good.

"Maybe I've descended from murderers, too," Rey remarked sadly. "I don't even know who my parents were … maybe they were Rebellion … Empire … murderers or scum …"

"It doesn't matter who your parents were, Rey – what matters is who you are today," Poe told her seriously. "Look at Kylo Ren – his parents are heroes of the Rebellion, his uncle is Luke Skywalker and even that was not enough to keep him in the Light …"

"True … " She fell silent for a moment, realising that years later, she was still alone. She didn't realise that she had spoken the last word aloud until Poe shook his head.

"No, you're not alone," he assured her. "Not anymore – I promise you that you're not alone …"

He reached out his hand and took it in his and she smiled back at him, moved beyond measure by the warmth of his eyes.

*

"Come on, Luke. Stop dawdling," Leia's voice had a snap to it as they stood at the top of the craggy outcrop. Poe's lips twitched at the Jedi Master being addressed as though he was a naughty child.

"I haven't made up my mind yet," Luke told her stiffly. He stared over at his sister who was flanked by Chewbacca, the tall Wookiee with his hands on his hips, and Poe Dameron, standing in a more relaxed pose, but also on alert and ready to act. At his side, Rey studied him with dark, unfathomable eyes.

With a sigh, Luke went into his cottage and merged with a satchel on his shoulder. "Lead away, sister," he told her and started walking down the winding mountain path at Leia's side, Chewbacca following closely behind.

"I guess he's coming with us," Rey remarked with a smile. She looked down startled as the Resistance pilot extended one hand to her. 

"Are we friends?" she asked him with a wondering smile, her head slightly tilted. 

Poe grinned at her. "We can be whatever you want us to be – but friends is a good place to start."

With a moment's hesitation she put her hand in his and they began walking down the steps, side by side and Rey realised with growing joy that no matter what happened, she was no longer alone.

****

fin


End file.
